The Cold War

Running in the winter sounded like fun ... in the summer.

"Do not go outside today unless you have to," ordered the weather woman as I zipped a jacket over an insulating vest, ...

Illustration by Jeremy Collins

"Do not go outside today unless you have to," ordered the weather woman as I zipped a jacket over an insulating vest, which was over a base layer. The dog was nowhere to be found: moments earlier, when I let him back inside after his morning pee, he hid. Man's best friend—or fair-weather friend?

I hit "start" on my watch, pulled on my mittens, and stepped into the sub-zero, pre-dawn air.

Several months earlier, I had practically crawled back to the car, with both big water bottles bone dry, after a trail run in triple-digit heat, wishing I could be transported into the Siberian winter.

Be careful what you wish for. The morning's cold literally took my breath away. Did I need a fourth layer?